Kim and Rwakarambwe on target against Southend
Pompey Academy geared up for Tuesday’s FA Youth Cup tie against Barton Rovers with a 2-0 league triumph against Southend at Furze Lane.
They opened the scoring early on with Brandon Joseph-Buadi pulling the ball back for Kim Jae Heon (pictured) to fire home from the edge of the box.
Fahad Rwakarambwe then secured a fifth successive victory in the closing stages after being teed-up by substitute Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Academy coach Paul Hardyman said: “We rested key players like Jack Whatmough, Ben Close, Bradley Tarbuck and Lewis Horsburgh ahead of the cup match.
“That meant we finished the game with five of our under-16 squad on the pitch, which is fantastic experience for them and shows that we’ve got another good crop of players coming through.
“So I was really pleased with the result – and also the performance that went with it.
“We took a bit of time to get going and the first half was a bit scrappy, but we looked a lot better after the break.
“I was impressed with our defensive display against a more experienced Southend side, who would have conceded more without several key saves from their England youth goalkeeper.
“We scored two good goals and kept a clean sheet, which keeps us among the bunch at the top of the table.”
Pompey: Bass; Haunstrup, Field, Smart, Medway (Davis 61); Rwakarambwe, Nilsen, Granger (Oxlade-Chamberlain 54), Kim (Sayers 61); Gill, Joseph-Buadi